Maybe this is a stupid question but how should I split my time while preparing my application? 70 % LSAT, 30 % personal statement? 60/40?

From reading around TLS it seems numbers are far and away the most important part of applications. Since other factors are less important, does it make sense to sacrifice time that could be spent studying for the LSAT to write a personal statement? How much does the personal statement weigh in comparison to the LSAT?

walterwhite wrote:Maybe this is a stupid question but how should I split my time while preparing my application? 70 % LSAT, 30 % personal statement? 60/40?

From reading around TLS it seems numbers are far and away the most important part of applications. Since other factors are less important, does it make sense to sacrifice time that could be spent studying for the LSAT to write a personal statement? How much does the personal statement weigh in comparison to the LSAT?

It takes three weeks for scores to come out, just write it then, can't apply without the score anyway.

Your PS, from my experience and seeing others, probably will not MAKE your application. If it shows bad writing or something highly controversial, it may break it.. But it won't make it.

Your LSAT on the other hand can.. And you didn't post your GPA but, splitter or not a few points on the LSAT can make a huge difference.

You should be able to still think about your PS, try to figure out what you want to write about etc.. Even while you're studying. You don't need to LSAT prep 24/7, or even every moment outside of class if you're still in UG.

Then after the LSAT, write it.. Revise it.. Proof it.. Get second opinions and such.. But it shouldn't take an exorbitant amount of time..

walterwhite wrote:Maybe this is a stupid question but how should I split my time while preparing my application? 70 % LSAT, 30 % personal statement? 60/40?

From reading around TLS it seems numbers are far and away the most important part of applications. Since other factors are less important, does it make sense to sacrifice time that could be spent studying for the LSAT to write a personal statement? How much does the personal statement weigh in comparison to the LSAT?

It should be 100% LSAT and 0% Personal statement. Just do the personal statement when you have time.

Honestly, I'd rather have a 180 and this be my personal statement:

"I want to go to your law school.

-Manofthehour"

than to have a kick ass pure gold personal statement and a 170.

I'm not encouraging writing a shitty PS. But the PS won't be a (positive) factor for you if you don't have the hard numbers down. That's why I'd focus 100% on the LSAT. Get that as high as possible. When you're done, then work on your PS.

With the PS, you really just need to show that you're not a complete psychopath and that you can form coherent sentences and paragraphs in English. Honestly, I'm not even sure I managed to achieve the former in mine, but Harvard still wanted me in the end because I had nice numbers. If my LSAT were 2 points lower, I probably would not have gotten in. Use that information however you wish.

Caveat 1: yes, this would suggest you should focus almost wholly on the LSAT, but there are exceptions to this. If test-taking comes naturally to you, then you might not need to study so much, so why not spend more time on your PS? (Obviously take a practice test or 5 before you take this route...) Alternatively, if you're really terrible at writing, you might need to spend more time working on your essay(s). Of course, if you really can't write, you should probably reconsider law school.

Caveat 2: Sometimes extra essays can make or break your application, or help you with aid/merit money. "Why X" essays can get you in where you wouldn't have otherwise and get you money where you wouldn't have otherwise. Some schools are a lot more receptive to this than others (e.g. UMich, UVA, Penn); if one of your top picks falls in this category, you may want to sacrifice a few hours - not days - of studying to write a "Why X" essay. (Note: if your scores are too high, you might just get WL'd anyway, though a lot of times, schools will take you off with merit money if you send a LOCI.)

Azariel wrote:With the PS, you really just need to show that you're not a complete psychopath and that you can form coherent sentences and paragraphs in English. Honestly, I'm not even sure I managed to achieve the former in mine, but Harvard still wanted me in the end because I had nice numbers. If my LSAT were 2 points lower, I probably would not have gotten in. Use that information however you wish.

Caveat 1: yes, this would suggest you should focus almost wholly on the LSAT, but there are exceptions to this. If test-taking comes naturally to you, then you might not need to study so much, so why not spend more time on your PS? (Obviously take a practice test or 5 before you take this route...) Alternatively, if you're really terrible at writing, you might need to spend more time working on your essay(s). Of course, if you really can't write, you should probably reconsider law school.

Caveat 2: Sometimes extra essays can make or break your application, or help you with aid/merit money. "Why X" essays can get you in where you wouldn't have otherwise and get you money where you wouldn't have otherwise. Some schools are a lot more receptive to this than others (e.g. UMich, UVA, Penn); if one of your top picks falls in this category, you may want to sacrifice a few hours - not days - of studying to write a "Why X" essay. (Note: if your scores are too high, you might just get WL'd anyway, though a lot of times, schools will take you off with merit money if you send a LOCI.)

The goal of a PS is to avoid typos. Everything else doesn't matter and outside the extreme cancer-curing stories, will make literally zero difference.

walterwhite wrote:haha ok guys i was hoping these are the kinds of answers i would get. I would much rather do practice questions than write a boring personal essay.

and somebody asked my GPA- it's 3.77. I think I need a 168-170 to sneak into the bottom of the T 14.

Although obviously I'm aiming to get a 180 haha

Bro, a 168-170 with a 3.77 GPA is practically a lock for the T14. Aim high, my man.

are you sure? most of the sites like law school numbers and law school predictor put those numbers at about 50-65% for the bottom of the T 14

I don't think he's saying that it's a lock for all of the T14 schools; it obviously isn't. But I think your chances of being shut out of ALL of the T14 entirely with those numbers is next to nil, assuming the rest of his application is up to snuff.

Yale, Stanford, and Berkeley are the only top schools where the PS carries a good deal of weight in admissions decisions. Even with these three, however, you'll need strong numbers before your PS will do much to help you.